System for utilizing exhaust-steam.



WADAGAKI. SYSTEM FOR UTILIZING EXHAUST STEAM,

APPLIOATION FILED 0UT.7, 1908.

91 3,330. Patented Feb. 23, 1909.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

II!!! III, III/II III/ With/moo firm/220 xiisuzo WADAGAKI,

OF SASEBO, JAPAN.

SYSTEM FOR UTILIZING EXHAUST-STEAM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 23, 1909.

Application filed October 7, 1908. Serial No. 456,594.

To all whom it may concern:

' Be it known that I, YASUZO WADAGAKI, a subject of the Emperor of Japan, and a. citizen of Nojeo village, Kinosaki, Hyogo Ken, residing at Sasebo, in the county of Hizen, Japan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Systems for Utilizing the E aust-Steam of Marine or other Engines for Producing Greater Power; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to an improved system forutilizing the exhaust steam of marine or other engines for producing greater power.

The object of this invention is to utilize, as far as possible, the heretofore necessary waste of available energy which is ordinarily carried away with the exhaust steam from a marine engine cylinder or turbine by utilizing said exhaust steam to com ress the main su pl of live steam led to t e main engine cy in ers, to a greater pressure.

With this and other objects in view, the

invention'consists of certain novel features of construction, combination and arrange-- ment of parts, as will be more fully described and particularly pointed out in the appended claims. In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of the invention as arranged in connection with the main propellin machinery of ,a. vessel of the turbine type Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view on line 2-2 of Fig. 1 and Fig. 3 is a plan view partly in horizontal section of the compressor.

Referring more articularly to the drawings which are for illustrative purposes only and therefore not drawn to scale, the numeral 1 indicates the main steam pi e which conveys the live steam from the oilers to the .prop'elling machinery, 2 indicates a rotary compressor of any suitable design, capable of complressing the main supply .of live steam to a st higher. pressure and temperature before its a mittance to the engine cylinders, 3 thehigh pressure steam pipes conducting the steam compressed in the rotary com ressorto the main engine highpressure cylin ers, 4,

.and 5 the screw propellers.

In the invention into effect, an auxilia tu inc 7 of any suitable type is ar-- tween the turbines 4 and is driven by the exhaust steam which is led from the main turbines 4 into the auxiliary turbine 7 by the eduction pipes 6. The steam taken from the boilers by the main steam pipe 1 is partly or wholly admitted to the rotary compressor 2 wherein it is compressed to a still higher pressure and temperature. The steam so superheated in the rotary compressor 2 is then conducted by way of the high pressure pipes 3 to the main turbines 4. After doing the principal work in the turbines 4 in driving the screw propellers 5, the steam is next le to the auxiliary turbine 7 which is coupled to the shaft 8 to which is fixed both the rotating vanes of auxiliary turbine 7 and the retary compressor 2. The exhaust steam after operating the turbine 7- is led by the pipes 9 to the condensers 9.

The regulation of the speed of revolution of the auxiliary turbine is controlled by means of the by-pass pi cs 10 and the steam sto valves 11 and 12 tted 0n the pipes 10 an at theinner end of steam pipe 1, re- Spectively. By means of these valves the relative amount of steam passed through the bypass pipes and compressor may be regulated at will. For instance, when it is desired to increase the speed of the auxiliary turbine the stop valve 12 is more nearly closed, while the stop valves 11 are opened to a greater extent and when it is desired to decrease the speed of the turbine 7, the reverse adjustment of these stop valves is effected. In order to work the auxiliary turbine 7 at the most economical speed of revolution it is necessary to know the absolute direction in which the exhaust steam is -finally discharged from the last row of rotating vanes in the turbine. To make this statement clear, it may be said that in any steam turbine there is a particular speed of revolutions correspondin to a given supply of steam which gives t e, maximum efiiciency. With the speed of revolution giving the maximum efficiency, the exhaust steam is discharged -from the last row of rotating vanes in a direction parallel to the axis of the turbine shaft. In order that an engineer may ascertain at all times the absolute direction in which the exhaust steam is finally discharged from the last row of rotating vanes and to enable him to run the turbine at the most economical speed, I provide an automatic indicator 13 consisting of a stem or spindle 14 which passes .throu h a steam tight stufling box on the top of t 1e turbine casing as clearly shown in Fig. 2 in a position immediately behind the last row of rotating vanes, this stem being provided at its inner end with a flat floating vane or body 15 and at its outer end with an index 16 to indicate the angular position ofthe floating vane 15 and consequently the direction or course of the. exhaust steam dischar ed from the last row of rotating vanes an the consequent speed of the turbine.

Steam pipes 17 and stop valves 18 are provided for the requirement ofgoing astern as will be understood. When there is ample space in the engine room, the go-astern turbmes are preferably made and fitted in separate cylinders from those of the go-ahead turbines, although in Fig. 1 they are shownplaced in the same cylinders of the going ahead turbines as a matter of convenience of illustration. Now in naval vessels, the rate of expansion of steam in en ine cylinder's cannot be carried high enoug as might be desired, simply because the naval engines have at times in' the course of their service to develo the highest ossible amount of ower lbr each ton of weight allowed to them.

n the other hand, if, at the expense of extra weight, the engine cylinders are made sufficiently large so as to obtain the desired rate of steam expansion, then the loss due to initial condensation ofsteamin the engine cylinders and the mechanical friction of engmes, when working at reduced rate of power, would oflset any advantage that would be derived from greater expansion of steam. Again, in the case-of vessels fitted with turbine engines and cruising at a moderate rate of speed, the propelling turbines are not capable of working at a sufiicien-tly high rate of revolution per minute, for the reason that the efiicienc of too small a ropeller would become seriously afiected w en the-ship is required to go at full speed. In all these cases, a large amountof otherwise available heat is unavoidably carried away with the exhaust steam. By means of m invention, however, an opportunity is a forded to save at least a part of this large waste of energy by the employment of t e auxiliary turbine and the rotary steam compressor. Also, as the auxiliary turbine and the rotary steam compressor have no direct mechanical connection with the propeller shafting, they maybe operated at any desired rate of speed or revolution, irrespective of any consideration of propeller efliciency. And since their center line need not coincide withany. of the center lines of the propeller shafting, they may be installed at any convenient position in the engine room at the option of the designer. There is therefore almost no ractical restriction regarding the choice 0 diameter of the vane wheel or the auxiliary turbine and hence any .desired peripheral velocity may be'obtained for its vanes, lik'el to give the most economical result. Also y the employment of my invention means is provided not only whereby it may be certainly determined when the auxiliary turbine is working at the most economical speed of revolution per minute, but also an infallible means is provided for automatically controlling and indicating the speed, whatever may be the vpower and speed of the main propelling engines 4 at the instant in question. In other words this invention provides for extracting the maximum amount of available energy still possessed by steam at the last stage'o'r' its expansion in the engine 0 lmders or turbines and for restoring t e energ to the main supply of live steam, in the s ape of extra pressure or-superheated tem erature. The result will doubtless be pro uctive of considerable steam-economy in working the. main propelling machinery in either reci rocating engines or turbines.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the accompanying draw- ;ings, the constructiqn and operation of the invention will be readily understood without a re uiring a more extended explanation.

arrous changes in the form, roportion and the minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the prin or sacrificing any of the advantages of ciple v the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described and ascertained:

utilizing the exhaust steam to compress the supply of live steam to a greater pressure before being admitted to the engine cylinders.

2. In combination with the main engines of a marine vessel propellin mechanism, an auxilia v turbine driven y .the exhaust steam om the main. engines and a compressor driven by ,said auxiliary turbine, said com ressor being arranged to compress the supp y of live steam to a greater ressure before the admittance thereof tot e main engines.

3. In combination'withmain stationary haust steam from main engines to create.

reater ower com risan auxilia turine driven by th d ex iius't steam dfj the lain engines, a rotary compressor driven by the auxiliary turbine for compressing the supply of steam to a greaterpressurabefore 1. In combination with the propelling mechanism of a marine vessel, means for fluid-operated engines and a main steam r,

admittance to the main engine cylinders and [low of the exhaust steam after passing comprising a stem extending through the turbine casing and provided at its outer end with an index and at its inner end with a flat through the last row of rotating vanes in the I floating vane.

auxiliary turbine.

5. In a system including an auxiliary turbine for utilizing the exhaust steam from marine engines to create greater power, an

indicator for indicating the direction of flow 5 ofthe exhaust steam after passing through the last row of rotating vanes in the turbine In testimony whereof have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

YASUZO WADAGAKI. Witnesses Tsrmnzo SHIGIO, v .GKRLETON MILLER. 

